Tony Romo cutting back on offseason golf

KEITHWHITMIRE

FS Southwest

Cowboys fans who get irritated every time
Tony Romo swings a golf club are in for a less-stressful spring and summer.

Romo will be playing a lot less golf during the off-season, according to a report by ESPN Dallas.

Romo has passed on playing several top amateur tournaments as well as qualifiers for the HP Byron Nelson Championship and the U.S. Open.

He declined a chance to play in the Azalea Invitational, a top amateur tournament in Charleston, S.C. Romo is also giving up a spot in the local Adams Golf Pro/Scratch tournament, an event he's won before.

Romo hasn't spoken publicly since the end of last season, not even after he got a six-year, $108 million extension at the end of March.

One can only speculate that the reduced time on the links is a reaction to Jerry Jones' statements during the draft that Romo will be spending "Peyton Manning-type time on the job."

Jones said he wants Romo to put in 11-hour workdays, six days a week – not counting game days - at the Cowboys' Valley Ranch training facility to be more involved in implementing the offense.

Romo's many critics have contended that he spends too much time studying greens instead of game film. This despite the fact teammates have never criticized Romo's work ethic, and tight end
Jason Witten recently defended the amount of time Romo spends on the job.

Then again, it could just be that Romo wants to spend time with his wife – the couple's second wedding anniversary is at the end of the month – and 1-year-old son.

But given Jones' statements, which in a backhanded way said that Romo hasn't been spending enough time at Valley Ranch, it's a good bet that Romo wants to at least give the impression he is fully focused on football.

If Jones could fully focus on being a general manager, disgruntled Cowboys fans would have nothing to complain about.